#100: Howards End
Part of the Top 150 Films series
Merchant Ivory at the peak of its powers, Howards End is a triumph of writing, acting, lensing, editing and art direction. Though heavily indebted to its time, the film never veers into period pornography because of the impeccable synergy between craft and story. Jhabvala and Ivory manage to make the near-impossible feat of adapting a very literary book and making it intensely cinematic. Think of the introductory walk outside Howards End as the credits roll: the lighting is understated but warm, the score is gentle but ever present, even the typography lends itself to a specific place in history. You can’t get this from a book, no matter how well written, and the film only gets better from there. Intensely moving on its social issues, yet light and frothy when it needs to be, Howards End is a miracle: a period film with a burning heart and soul.
